EUROCOPTER FRANCE SA-365C, SA-365C1, SA-365C2, SA-365N, SA-365N1, AS-365N2, AS 365 N3 and SA-366G1 helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2011-0551; Directorate Identifier 2009-SW-013-AD; Amendment 39-16714; AD 2011-12-07] – Visually inspect the adhesive bead between the bushing and the Starflex star arm for a crack, a gap, or loss of the adhesive bead. Also, inspect the Starflex arm ends for delamination, and replace the Starflex star if any discrepancies are found.
AUSTRO ENGINE E4 engines [Docket No. FAA-2010-1055; Directorate Identifier 2010-NE-35-AD] – This proposed AD would require operators to conduct repetitive inspections of the fuel pressure supply for excessive oscillations to determine if the high-pressure fuel pumps have been exposed to damaging pressure oscillations. Pumps that have been exposed to such damaging conditions would have to be replaced before further flight, and the terminating action for the repetitive inspections would be to install a newly designed fuel pump.
KIMBERLY HERRELL has rejoined San Diego-based operator Schubach Aviation as director of charter sales. Herrell originally joined Schubach Aviation in 2005 as a charter sales coordinator and served with the company until January 2010. She also has spent three years as a charter sales coordinator for Million Air Salt Lake City and as a concierge at the Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City.
Amid mounting evidence that its planned wireless broadband network will interfere with GPS, Reston, Va.-based LightSquared has requested and received a two-week extension to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) June 15 deadline for filing a report on the extent of the interference. The new deadline is July 1.
The International Business Aviation Council (IBAC) has completed a “comprehensive assessment” of the structure and management processes for the International Standard for Business Aircraft Operations (IS-BAO), says Director General Donald Spruston.
Bombardier Aerospace has increased its customer support efforts with the addition of four field service representatives (FSRs) and two customer support account managers (CSAMs). In the next six months, FSRs will be deployed in different regions, including France, Eastern Europe and South Africa, while the additional CSAMs will support operators in Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa. The Canadian manufacturer says it will have 25 FSRs and CSAMs supporting business aircraft customers in Europe.
Bilateral aviation safety agreements (BASAs) can lower the cost of certifying Part 145 repair stations in foreign countries by up to three times, says a new report from aerospace consulting firm AeroStrategy and the Aeronautical Repair Station Association (ARSA).
MT (Metalcraft), which acquired the assets of Emivest Aerospace from bankruptcy in April, is renaming the operation SyberJet Aircraft and has reaffirmed plans to eventually restart production of the SJ30 light jet. In the first public statement since acquiring Emivest for $3.5 million, the new owner of the SJ30 program says it has moved the Martinsburg, W.Va. assembly line to its facilities in Cedar City, Utah, but is continuing operations in San Antonio. SyberJet did not purchase the facilities in San Antonio, but reportedly is leasing the space there.
Gama Aviation, a business aviation services company based in the U.K., has achieved Wyvern approval across its affiliated operating bases in Europe, the Americas and the Middle East. The approval recognizes that Gama maintains strict safety programs, which Wyvern audits annually and monitors throughout the year.
PAUL GOODRUM has joined PAS Technologies as key account manager. Goodrum will be responsible for working with Rolls-Royce and first-tier suppliers in both the original equipment manufacturing and maintenance, repair and overhaul markets. Goodrum has more than 30 years of aerospace experience, most recently as a technical manager at Dunlop Aircraft Tyres. He also has held account management positions at Sermatech International and Praxair Surface Technologies.
PATRICK BLOODWORTH was named aeronautical business development director for SkyNet Satellite Communications USA. He will be responsible for growth of SkyNet’s Aeronautical Information System (AIS) with private, commercial and government customers in the Americas. He has more than 25 years of new technology system sales, customer training and program management experience.
Flexjet has signed an agreement with Rosewood Hotels & Resorts that will provide customers of the fractional ownership provider with special access to hotels and resorts, along with benefits including special destination package options and room upgrades. Established in 1979, Rosewood operates a chain of upscale residence-style hotels in seven countries.
JENNY ROGERS was named sales director for Gulfstream Aerospace’s North American sales, East division. Rogers will be responsible for sales in New England, New York (excluding metro New York City) and in Quebec and the Maritime provinces of Canada. Rogers previously spent more than three years as a New Jersey-based Northeast sales director for Hawker Beechcraft, where she marketed, sold and delivered more than 30 aircraft. Rogers joined Hawker Beechcraft in January 2003 as a flight intern.
Columbus, Ohio-based fractional ownership company NetJets signed a deal with Signature Flight Support to have its own private terminal at Palm Beach International Airport, the companies announced last week. The facility will include a newly constructed 10,000-sq.-ft. terminal, along with approximately six acres of paved ramp, aircraft movement and car parking areas. The deal will enable NetJets to serve its customers with staff from Signature in a facility built to its specifications.
Aviation market intelligence consultancy Jetnet reports double-digit growth of 15.7% in used business jet retail sales transactions in the first four months of 2011, along with a decline in average asking price. The health of the pre-owned market sets the stage for new aircraft orders, Jetnet adds in a new report.
Cessna Aircraft has updated its Apple iPad information and planning application designed for all of the company’s single-engine aircraft. The new version of the application, the iFlite 3, enables pilots to access up-to-the-minute weather images, plan routes and features dual-screen moving maps. iFlite 3 also provides access to Cessna Pilot Operating Handbooks, enables users to calculate aircraft weight and balance, along with takeoff and landing performance numbers.
The National Transportation Safety Board dispatched an investigator last week to the scene of a forced landing and fire involving a vintage Boeing B-17 owned by the Liberty Foundation. The aircraft, dubbed the Liberty Belle, had seven people on board. Liberty Foundation Chief Pilot Ray Fowler says the aircraft was scheduled to fly from Aurora Airport in Illinois to Indianapolis. Flying the aircraft were John Hess, who has piloted the World War II bomber since 2005 and has more than 14,000 hr.
MIKE OPHEIM was appointed vice president of business aviation sales for Satcom Direct, where he will be responsible for marketing items, including printed material, trade shows and management of website content and media, along with customer interface development in all areas of the organization. Before coming to Satcom Direct, Opheim spent almost 30 years with Rockwell Collins, most recently as director of eastern region aftermarket sales.
Initial testing of GPS receivers confirms aircraft navigation systems will experience significant jamming from thousands of broadband-wireless transmitters planned to be deployed across the U.S. The tests were conducted to determine the susceptibility of GPS receivers to interference from the high-power terrestrial transmitters that LightSquared plans to deploy.
Gulfstream Aerospace has delivered its 300th Gulfstream G550 business jet, to a Taiwanese customer. Taiwan charter and aircraft management company Win Air will manage the jet. The company operates two U.S.-registered aircraft (a Gulfstream G450 and a GIV), along with its two Taiwan-registered G550s.
Smyrna Air Center, a Tennessee-based fixed-base operator, has completed its first Power 90 Upgrade conversion for AeroMetric. GE Aviation’s M601E-11A engines are now powering AeroMetric’s King Air E-90 aircraft, which are based in Anchorage, Alaska. The Power 90 Upgrade is a conversion in which the King Air 90’s original powerplants are replaced with the 705-shp GE M601E-11A engines.
Eclipse Aerospace has sold out spaces for its Avio IFMS completion program. More than 100 customers have placed firm, non-refundable deposits to participate in the program, which is now booked through March 2012. This program installs the fully integrated Avio flight management system into the Eclipse 500 very light jet, completing one of the most advanced glass cockpits in general aviation.
BOMBARDIER Regional Jet Series 700, 701, 702, 705 and 900 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2011-0159; Directorate Identifier 2010-NM-246-AD; Amendment 39-16713; AD 2011-12-06] – Replace the Horizontal Stabilizer Trim Actuator (HSTA) with a modified HSTA, per the instructions of Bombardier Service Bulletin 670BA-27-058 (dated Aug. 31, 2010).
The Nordam board of directors is expected to elect Meredith Siegfried CEO at the July board meeting, putting one of the final pieces in place in the company’s long-term succession plan for its leadership. Siegfried, daughter of Nordam founder and longtime owner Ray Siegfried, joined the business in 1999 and became chief operating officer in January.
Fractional aircraft program operators are seeing an uptick in demand for aircraft shares, the heads of two key providers say. Steven Santo, president and CEO of Avantair, says, “We’re seeing resurgence in the fractional side.” The company, which sells shares in Piaggio Avantis, is seeing growth at a rate not experienced since the beginning of the downturn, Santo says. The company is accelerating the number of planes it is taking and hiring more pilots, he notes, adding that Avantair will have increased its fleet by eight aircraft this year.
